Item cross references

This list supports the enhanced lists interface. Learn more about using enhanced lists.

Item cross references improve communication between you, your customers, and your suppliers when you create transactions. They also enable you to offer alternatives for an item that might be out-of-stock or suggest items that the customer would like in addition to the items they're ordering.

Subscription

Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing
Regional availability

All regions
User type

Employee

Business

Project Manager

Warehouse
Permissions

Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing:

  • Items: Add, Edit, Delete, List, View
Restrictions

  • Employee, Project Manager, and Warehouse users can only List and View item cross references.

  • Item cross references for customers can only be added from the Order Entry or Inventory Control application.

  • Item cross references for suppliers can only be added from the Purchasing or Inventory Control application.
Tip Item cross references can also be created, edited, and deleted from an item.

About item cross references

Item cross references are either external or internal.

External item cross references

Your customers, suppliers, and you often use different identifiers (or SKUs) to refer to the same item, which can make entering Order Entry or Purchasing transactions challenging.

External cross references, or aliases, match the customer and vendor identifiers for an item to the item ID you use, which then makes transaction entry easier and more robust. When you enter Order Entry or Purchasing transactions, you can enter your item ID or their identifier, whichever makes sense.

For example, a customer contacts you to order an item, giving you only the identifier they use for the item. When you create the sales order and enter the details for the line, you can enter their identifier. The system then automatically resolves their identifier to your item ID and populates the Item ID field.

Or, you buy an item from a supplier. When you create the purchase order and select the item ID for the item, the system automatically resolves your item ID to the identifier the supplier uses. The supplier identifier is included in the transaction when it's selected on the line.

Cross reference information in Order Entry and Purchasing transactions speeds fulfillment because it makes it easier for you to know what your customers want and for your suppliers to know what you want. When you send your customers and suppliers printed documents, you can include the identifiers they use for the items by using the <<ENTRIES_ITEMALIASID>> merge field.

Internal item cross references

Internal cross references identify the items in your system that are alternate items for another item so you can satisfy your customers needs with greater ease. You can use the alternate items to suggest substitute, upgrade, downgrade, or complement items. This is especially useful if an item is out of stock or you have other items to recommend to go along with what your customer wants.

For example, you sell lanyards that are made of various materials: string, nylon, or leather. You consider the nylon lanyards to be your basic product and offer them in a variety of colors.

  • String is a downgrade from nylon.
  • Nylon is an upgrade from string and a downgrade from leather. Various colors of the nylon lanyard are essentially equivalent substitutes.
  • Leather is an upgrade from both nylon and string

When lanyards are sold, you can offer badge holders that clip to the lanyard as a complement item.

Assume a customer calls to order green nylon lanyards and you have all the alternate items set up. As you enter the sales order for the green lanyards, you discover they’re out of stock. However, you can quickly discover from the sales order transaction itself that red or blue string lanyards and leather lanyards are available and offer these as alternative options to the customer.

View an item cross reference

  1. Go to Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing, and select Setup > Items > Cross references.

  2. Find a cross-reference on the list.

  3. Select More actions > View at the end of the row.

  4. You can review the details, edit, or duplicate the cross reference.

  1. Go to Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing, and select Setup > Items > Cross references.

  2. Find a cross reference on the list.
  3. Select View.

Add an item cross reference - external

You can add an item cross reference from Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing.

Use Inventory Control or Order Entry to create cross references for customers. Use Inventory Control or Purchasing to create cross references for suppliers.

  1. From Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing, go to Setup > Items, and then select Add (circle) beside Cross references.

  2. In the Reference type field, select whether you’re creating an item cross reference for a customer or a vendor.

  3. In the Item ID field, select the item you’re creating the cross reference for.

  4. If the value of Reference type is:
    • Customer. Use Customer ID to select the customer to create the cross reference for.
    • Supplier. Use Supplier ID to select the supplier to create the cross reference for.

  5. In the Cross-reference item ID field, enter the identifier that the customer or supplier uses to refer to the item in their organization.

  6. Optionally, enter a description for the cross-reference item.

  7. Optionally, elect the Unit for the cross-reference item.

Add an item cross reference - internal

  1. From Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing, go to Setup > Items, and then selectAdd (circle) beside Cross references.
  2. In the Reference type field, select the type of alternate item:
    • Substitute
    • Upgrade
    • Downgrade
    • Complement
  3. In the Alternate item ID field, select the item you’re creating the alternate item for.

The item is updated to reflect that a cross reference has been created for the item.

You can also create cross references to your items from the item records. From Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing, go to Setup > Items, find the item you want to edit and Select More actions > Edit at the end of the row. When the Item Information page appears, select the Cross references tab.
You can also create cross references to your items from the item records. From Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing, go to Setup > Items, and select Edit next to the applicable item. When the Item Information page appears, select the Cross references tab.

Edit an item cross reference

After an item cross reference has been created only the cross-reference item ID, cross-reference item description, and unit can be changed.

  1. From Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing, go to Setup > Items, and select Cross references.

  2. Find the item cross reference that you want to edit.

  3. Select More actions > Edit at the end of the row.

  4. Make your changes.

  5. Select Save.

  1. From Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing, go to Setup > Items, and select Cross references.

  2. Select Edit next to the applicable item cross reference.

  3. Modify the information as needed, and select Save.

The item is updated to reflect the changes to the cross reference.

You can also edit a cross reference to an item from the item record. From Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing, go to Setup > Items, and select Edit next to the applicable item. When the Item Information page appears, select the Cross references tab.

Delete an item cross reference

An item cross reference can be deleted if it hasn't been used in a transaction. Deleting an item cross reference removes it from the system so that it cannot be recovered.

  1. From Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing, go to Setup > Items, and select Cross references.

  2. Find the item cross reference that you want to delete.

  3. Select More actions > Delete at the end of the row.

  4. Select Delete to confirm.

  1. From Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing, go to Setup > Items, and select Cross references.

  2. Select the Delete checkbox for the applicable item cross reference and then select Delete.

The item is updated to reflect that the cross reference has been deleted.

You can also delete a cross reference to an item from the item record. From Inventory Control, Order Entry, or Purchasing, go to Setup tab > Items, and select Edit next to the applicable item. When the Item Information page appears, select the Cross references tab.

Field descriptions

The following table describes each field in the Item cross reference page.

Item cross reference page field descriptions
Field Description

Reference type

Whether the cross reference is for a:

  • Customer
  • Supplier
  • Substitute
  • Upgrade
  • Downgrade
  • Complement

Item ID

The item in your Sage Intacct company that you’re creating the cross reference for.

Alternate item ID

The item in your Sage Intacct company that will be an alternate item for Item ID.

Customer ID

The customer to create the cross reference for. This field is active only if the reference type is Customer.

Supplier ID

The vendor to create the cross reference for. This field is active only if the reference type is Supplier.

Cross-reference item ID

The identifier that the customer or vendor uses in their company to refer to the item. This field is active only if the reference type is Customer or Supplier.

Cross-reference item description

A description for the cross-reference item. This field is active only if the reference type is Customer or Supplier.

Unit

The unit for the cross-reference item. The selectable values are the units that are defined for the item's UOM group. For example: Each, Pair, or Dozen